Spring has sprung and episode 40 of the LITC podcast arrives! Today, famous palaeontologist, artist and all-around international fabulous guy Mark Witton returns to the show as he geeks out with our own Marc Vincent about Tyrannosaurus rex! Mark’s upcoming new book, King Tyrant, is all about the toothy star from Hell Creek. For Vintage Dinosaur Art, Marc, Gemma and Natee go back to 1950’s Denmark and discuss a rare treat from illustrator Verner Hancke, or rather from Gemma’s attic. Will Gemma and Natee finally accept the superiority of T. rex over all other dinosaurs? Will Marc finally learn to pronounce “pterosaur” correctly? Are hadrosaurs secretly evil? Is Megatherium going to eat those passengers, or does it just want to play? And how does Gemma really feel about AI? All shall be revealed… in episode 40!
In the News
- Gemma saw some dinosaurs at Kölner Zoo!
- A huge 22 million pound grant has been awarded to the restoration and preservation of the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs!
- The esteemed Czech palaeoartist Jan Sovák passed away in April. Expect tributes on both the blog and podcast.
- A new paper by one Mark P. Witton lays out the history of Megalosaurus bucklandii in science and culture.
- We still don’t care about Jurassic World
- We do, however, care about Walking With Dinosaurs
- Garudapterus buffetauti is a new pterosaur from Thailand!
- Alright, here’s that music video Gemma made.
Vintage Dinosaur Art
Fortidsdyr i farver was written by Kai Petersen and illustrated by Verner Hancke. It originally came out in 1957.
Interview
Our returning guest Mark P. Witton is a British vertebrate palaeontologist, author, and palaeoartist best known for his research and illustrations concerning pterosaurs, but his most recent book is all about Tyrannosaurus rex! Having already reviewed the book here, our resident T. rex fanboy Marc geeks out with him. Mark’s website is here. His book King Tyrant is available for pre-order at Princeton University Press.
Image (c) Mark P Witton and Princeton University Press, used with permission
Image (c) Mark P Witton and Princeton University Press, used with permission
Image (c) Mark P Witton and Princeton University Press, used with permission
Image (c) Mark P Witton and Princeton University Press, used with permission
Image (c) Mark P Witton and Princeton University Press, used with permission
Thank you for listening to the podcast! Our music was generously provided by Rohan Long. You can purchase his music at Bandcamp, and follow him at Twitter.
By becoming a patron on Patreon, you can help us continue creating podcasts and writing this blog. You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter. See you next time!
1 Comment
paleocharley
May 31, 2025 at 2:00 amEnjoyable podcast as usual. A few comments:
– The Stegosaurus is based on an early Knight illustration (from 1903, if I have my numbering correct), albeit reversed (original faces to the right). E.R. Lydekker used it (1905) as a basis for his bloated copy referred to in Doyle’s The Lost World.
– R. Zallinger’s illustrations of Camptosaurus are VERY recognizable- they are always blue with a green stripe on the side leading into a yellow/orange belly. PZ carries on this coloring, perhaps as a tribute to his father. The Camptosaurus here is like nothing that I recall.
– The large fish is identified as Portheus, which currently is considered a synonym of Xiphactinus.